1 May 2019

palimpsest

[pal-imp-sest]

noun

a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.

Origin

1655–65; < Latin palimpsēstus < Greek palímpsēstos rubbed again ( pálin again + psēstós scraped, rubbed, verbid of psân to rub smooth)

Related form

pal·imp·ses·tic , adjective

Dictionary.com

Contemporary example

Sri Lankan Muslims and Catholics have not been in conflict in the past, adding to a palimpsest of reasons that make this attack all the more puzzling to experts.
Sri Lankan Muslims To Fast In Solidarity With Fellow Christians
Muslim Matters
24 April 2019

Today’s quote

The rarest of all human qualities is consistency.

― Jeremy Bentham

On this day

1 May – May Day, a pagan celebration in the Northern Hemisphere to celebrate Spring and which includes crowning the May Queen. Led Zeppelin referenced it in ‘Stairway to Heaven’: ‘if there’s a bustle in your hedge-row don’t be alarmed now, it’s just a spring clean for the May Queen‘.

1 May – International Workers Day, or Labour Day, which includes celebrating the introduction of the 8 hour work day: ‘8 hours labour, 8 hours recreation, 8 hours rest’.

1 May 1962 – First KMart store opens in Garden City, Michigan, USA. In 2005, the USA KMart merged with Sears, Roebucks and Company.

1 May 1967 – Elvis Presley marries Priscilla Ann Beaulieu in Las Vegas.